HTC Desire S vs HTC Desire HD vs HTC Desire

HTC’s Desire was trumpeted as the first true iPhone rival on its release in early 2010. Then its HD big brother joined the party with a bigger screen, but questionable battery-life.

The Desire S, the most recent addition, brings a very similar set of features- will it be worth the upgrade?

HTC Desire

HTC’s Android call to arms, it’s still frequently handed best phone plaudits, only to be beaten by the iPhone in consumer choice awards. A 3.2-inch screen may seem a bit limiting compared to more recent Android smartphones, but it’s still very useable.

We were also part of a minority who really appreciated the optical trackpad below the touchscreen- something that’s disappeared from both the Desire HD and Desire S.

There’s a bit weight difference between the original Desire and the HD, probably the bigger screen and battery needed to power it.

Camera-wise, the Desire has a five-megapixel rear-facing camera, and the Desire S will be carrying a similarly specified camera, plus a front-facing VGA camera for videochat.

HTC Desire HD

HD means a bigger screen, and the HD trumps even the most recent Desire S; 4.3inches against 3.7-inches, though both carry the same 480×800 resolution. The larger screen real estate does make web-browsing and text selection easier.

HD does lord it over both the original Desire and Desire S with regard to its monstrous eight-megapixel camera, though the Desire S will have that video chat-ready second camera, while both the Desire S and HD are able to record 720p HD video.

The screen and meaty camera does take its toll on battery-life. Though HTC say the Desire HD should have a greater standby life than both the Desire and Desire S, in everyday use, it often requires daily charging.

HTC Desire S

What does that S stand for? Size? Well its not that much different to the original Desire’s dimensions, though noticeably shorter and narrower than the HD.

The Desire S will have the latest version of Android, Gingerbread (2.3), and HTC have already promised that the older Desire and HD will be getting their own upgrades sometime in Spring, following the launch of the Desire S.

Even though there’s been a fair gap between the Desire HD and S, the Desire S has held onto the 1GHz processor, and so any differences in speed would be down to the Android software, not what’s powering it all from the inside.

The Desire S has benefited from a style upgrade and is now encased in a unibody aluminium frame- we think the whole phone now looks more ‘premium’ than either of the other Desire models.